Word: gaza
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
That the United States should be a friend like no other to Israel is a bipartisan article of faith in Washington. So it is worth asking how it has come to pass that as Israel digs itself into a hole in Gaza, the U.S. appears to be paralyzed on the sidelines. The traditional role of U.S. administrations, established during the Nixon era, had been to balance the interests of Israel and its Arab neighbors, so that when conflict threatened to spiral out of control, Washington had the access to, and the leverage over, all sides necessary to avert catastrophe...
...high time for Hamas to return that soldier," Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told a media conference on Wednesday in reference to the capture of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, which precipitated the current Israeli offensive in Gaza. "It is high time then for everybody who has any influence on Hamas to make sure that that happens, and then we can get back on track...
...embracing an Israeli strategy of using an economic blockade of Gaza to either force a collapse of the Hamas government or else induce it to make such symbolic concessions as recognizing Israel, the U.S. folded its arms in the face of the ever-explosive relationship between Israel and the Palestinians. The Administration spoke of ensuring humanitarian support for the Palestinian population and backing President Mahmoud Abbas, but that did nothing to change the reality that Palestinian voters had elected Hamas as their government - and polls show its support has actually grown during the current showdown. But the financial chokehold...
...Former Israeli Justice Minister Yossi Beilin wrote this week that "a different (U.S.) administration, in a different situation, would have sent a special envoy to the region who would shuttle between Syria, Gaza and Jerusalem, trying to calm things down, threatening, promising, fuming - all in order to end the crisis." Instead, he continued, "The worsening violent conflict in the Middle East is a blatant reflection of the weakness of the American partner. At the moment of truth, when Israel needs a powerful third party capable of moving things in the area, it turns out that little beyond the repetitive recitation...
...Given the expanded objectives of the Israeli campaign and the possibility that the escalation of fighting creates its own momentum, Israel's original purpose in reentering Gaza might soon be forgotten. "We have no intention of drowning in the Gaza swamp," said Israeli Defense Minister Amir Peretz Thursday, adding that if Shalit is returned the troops will pull back. But it is the confrontation in northern Gaza, far away from where Shalit is believed to be held, that threatens to spiral out of control...